Whenever someone offers you free crypto, you’re probably pretty skeptical.
And you should be!
Unfortunately, there’s still a lot of scammy scum in this red-hot market.
However, that doesn’t mean there aren’t a few safe ways everyone could start stacking sats for free!
Don’t worry; you don’t need fancy mining rigs to take advantage of the tips below.
Even if you’re brand new to crypto, you should have an easy time using one of the following methods to your advantage.
Just be sure to manage your expectations!
While these strategies are safe, they aren’t going to replace your day job.
However, using the following tips could add a bit of Bits to your portfolio.
Before You Get That Free Crypto, Download A High-Quality Wallet!
I know you’re eager to start earning free crypto, but you first need to set up a secure crypto wallet.
Ideally, you should buy a trusted hardware wallet like Trezor or Ledger.
Unlike software-based wallets, “cold” storage devices keep your private keys offline. This makes it darn near impossible for hackers to steal from hardware devices.
However, considering the methods in this review won’t reward you millions in crypto, it’s OK to download a reputable hot wallet for convenient storage.
Sure, hot wallets are connected to the Internet, so they’re not hack-proof. However, these apps have come a long way in terms of security.
As long as you use a well-regarded crypto app, you shouldn’t have an issue claiming and storing your rewards.
If you’ve read through my previous blogs, you know I love Binance’s Trust Wallet. However, many other free crypto wallets have phenomenal ratings.
A few other hot wallets I’d recommend include:
- Coinbase Wallet
- Crypto.com DeFi Wallet
- Exodus
- MetaMask
- Atomic Wallet
Alternatively, you can check out my video of the best crypto wallets for beginners below:
Be sure to look through all of these apps and find one that suits your style.
Whatever you do, please don’t place all of your crypto on a centralized exchange.
No matter how “secure” an exchange is, it’s always more prone to a hack than a private wallet.
Looking for the best cryptocurrency exchanges?
FYI: You could learn more about using Trust Wallet in this previous post.
Five Free Ways Anyone Could Start Earning Crypto
Sign Up For A Legit Bitcoin Faucet
In the cryptoverse, “faucets” are magical websites that give out free Bitcoins.
Well, at least they were when nobody knew what Bitcoin was!
In fact, if you went on one of these websites back in the day, you could have racked up five Bitcoins almost every day.
Yes, you read that right: five Bitcoins!
Alas, now that Bitcoin is a ~ $1 trillion asset, crypto faucets aren’t as generous with their satoshis.
OK, so what exactly are these websites?
Basically, crypto faucets were designed to “trickle out” crypto into mainstream culture.
Although we take Bitcoin for granted nowadays, it struggled to gain acceptance early on.
To help get people involved in the Bitcoin project, some developers set up these faucets to reward early adopters.
Typically, these sites require users to submit their email and a wallet address to deposit any crypto they earn.
There are many ways you could earn crypto on faucets, but the most common methods include taking surveys, watching videos, or rolling a wheel after submitting a captcha.
After you hit a specific dollar amount of crypto in your account, you could send it to your private address.
There are dozens of faucets to choose from, but Cointiply is one of the most reputable.
Trust me; I could vouch for this site.
Not only is Cointiply legit, it has so many ways you could earn a little crypto.
Whether you like polls, games, or watching videos, you could quickly rack up points in your account.
Cointiply also has many great incentives like a loyalty bonus, referral programs, and interest after getting 30,000 coins.
Speaking of coins, each 10,000 coins on Cointiply equates to $1 USD.
The cool thing about Cointiply is that you could choose from four crypto rewards:
- Bitcoin
- Dogecoin
- Litecoin
- Dash
However, if you want BTC, you’ll need to withdraw at least $5 worth. For all the other tokens, you could withdraw $3 at a time.
To sign up for Cointiply, you’ll need to submit your name and a valid email address.
While I’m partial to Cointiply, there are many other legit faucets online.
However, I don’t advise giving out your email on too many faucet sites.
Before creating an account, always do plenty of research into a faucet’s history and safety record.
Ditch Your Current Web Browser For Brave
Brave isn’t as mainstream as Chrome, but it’s the browser of choice amongst crypto fans.
Launched in 2019, this ambitious Internet browser is laser-focused on solving the privacy problems that plague Google’s more popular platform.
Although Brave uses Chromium in its code, it protects users from tracking and ad-targeting technologies.
In fact, when you use Brave, you could “opt-in” to see a certain amount of ads.
Why would you want to see ads?
Free crypto!
For every ad you view, you get a certain amount of the ERC-20 crypto Basic Attention Tokens (BAT).
These tokens will get released into your browser’s wallet every month, and you could transfer them to an external wallet.
Brave partners with Gemini and Uphold, so you could easily verify your account with either of these platforms.
Just like with faucets, you probably won’t get more than a few bucks per month for using Brave.
However, it’s not just the BAT tokens that make people long-term converts to Brave.
In fact, most people use Brave to take advantage of its fast speed and privacy features.
To download the Brave browser, be sure to check out this link.
Apply For A Crypto Rewards Credit Or Debit Card
Forget “frequent flyer miles,” people nowadays want high-flying crypto rewards!
OK, cash-back cards are still the dominant choice, but recent reports suggest cards that offer crypto rewards are gaining ground.
In fact, there was over $2.5 billion in transactions with Visa crypto rewards cards in fiscal 2022.
It seems like every crypto-related company will soon have a crypto-back card offering.
However, you have to give props to BlockFi for offering the world’s first Bitcoin rewards credit card in 2021.
For those who don’t know, BlockFi is a US-based crypto lending platform that offers various crypto-related services.
In addition to their credit card, you could use BlockFi to take out crypto-backed loans, earn interest on crypto, and trade between various cryptocurrencies.
Initially, you could only earn rewards in Bitcoin, but BlockFi now allows cardholders to earn in the altcoins like XRP and Telcoin or stablecoins on its platform.
You could sign up for a BlockFi account on this link.
If you’re more into debit cards, then you’ve probably heard about Crypto.com’s metal Visa cards.
These fancy debit cards seamlessly connect with the Crypto.com app. So, if you ever need to “top” your card with some crypto or cash, you could manage it all on your phone.
Plus, many Crypto.com debit cards come with bonus features like crypto-back for Spotify, Netflix, and Amazon Prime.
Just keep in mind you need to stake a certain amount of CRO tokens to apply for the higher-tier (i.e., higher-reward) Crypto.com cards. Also, all of your rewards will be in CRO.
Beyond Crypto.com and BlockFi, here are a few other big-name crypto companies that will soon release credit or debit cards:
You could join the waitlist for any of these cards on the company’s official website.
Hey, if you’re genuinely into crypto, why not earn extra BTC with each card purchase?
Get Greedy For Sign-Up Bonuses & Referrals
If you don’t already have an account on a crypto exchange, I’d urge you to review special sign-up bonuses.
Often, companies will give you anywhere from $5 – $20 in crypto just to go on their platform.
Even if the platform you’re interested in doesn’t have a direct sign-up bonus, it probably has a referral service.
It’s a great idea to snoop around for affiliate links on prominent YouTube channels or Twitter feeds.
Here are just a few well-trusted crypto YouTubers that usually have hot referral links:
- Coin Bureau
- CryptosRUs
- BitBoy Crypto
- The Crypto Dad
And it’s not just exchanges that offer sign-up or referral bonuses.
Crypto lending providers like Celsius, Nexo, and BlockFi have pretty sweet deals.
As I noted in my post “The Best Crypto Bots on Coinbase Pro,” many trading bot providers give sweet deals, free services, and referral codes.
If you’re not in a hurry, consider waiting for the “holiday rush” to take advantage of Christmastime crypto giveaways.
Of course, once you’re on a crypto trading platform, be sure to use your referral code to earn a bit of passive income.
Take Crypto “Cram Courses” On Coinbase
Since Coinbase is the top-ranking exchange in North America, there’s a good chance most readers are thinking about using this platform.
If so, there is a unique way to earn free crypto with your Coinbase account.
Once you’re logged in to Coinbase, you could hit the “Earn” tab to, well, earn crypto!
Just watch a short video on an altcoin and answer one question correctly.
If you could do that, Coinbase will automatically send you a few dollars worth of that altcoin!
It’s that simple!
A few projects recently featured in this “Learn to Earn” feature include:
- Compound
- The Graph
- Stellar Lumens
- Render
- Fetch.ai
I know, you probably haven’t heard about all these protocols.
However, please remember you don’t have to hold onto these altcoins if you don’t want to.
Heck, you could immediately transfer all of these free coins into Bitcoin or Ethereum!
Please Be Extra Careful When Searching For Free Crypto!
Hopefully, this list gives you a few safe strategies to earn free crypto on the side.
Just remember that each of these methods won’t make you a crypto millionaire!
At most, you should expect to earn a few bucks from these methods each month.
Still, a few bucks is a few bucks!
Also, I feel like these low-risk tips are an excellent way for newbies to dip their toes into crypto.
You’ll learn many invaluable skills by just transferring your crypto rewards into a private wallet.
Just be sure to practice the safety tips I’ve mentioned above, and please be alert for “too good to be true” deals.
Nobody’s going to give you boatloads of Bitcoins for free.
If you use common sense and manage your expectations, these methods could help you earn some crypto on the side.
Want to learn how I make money using crypto? Check out my favorite node project here.
